TV Ratings Tuesday: 'Voice' Finale Up From Last Year; 'Happy Endings', 'Don't Trust The B' & 'Vegas' Tick Upwards

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NBC was the number one network in adults 18-49 while CBS was on top with total viewers.

On NBC, The Voice finale earned a season high 4.9, up a point and three tenths from last week's 3.6 and up half a point from last year's 4.4 adults 18-49 rating. Your predictions were a bit optimistic.

On CBS, NCIS earned a 3.3, up half a ratings point from last week's 2.8 among adults 18-49. NCIS: Los Angeles scored a 2.9, up three tenths from last week's 2.6 adults 18-49 rating. Vegas garnered a 1.6, up a single tenth from last week's 1.5 adults 18-49 rating.

On ABC, Happy Endings scored a 1.3, up a tenth from last week's 1.2 adults 18-49 rating. Don't Trust The B in Apt. 23 garnered a 1.1, also up a tenth from last week's 1.0 adults 18-49 rating. Private Practice was even with last week's 1.2 adults 18-49 rating.

Broadcast primetime ratings for December 18, 2012:

via press note:

In Late-Night Metered Markets Tuesday night: 

*	"The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" delivered its strongest Tuesday
results in metered-market households (a 3.5 rating, 9 share) since
President Obama was a guest on October 25, 2011 (4.1/11).  Jay's
guests last night included Quentin Tarantino, LeAnn Rimes

*	At 12:35 a.m. ET, "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" (1.8/6 in
metered-market households) earned its highest Tuesday rating since
President Obama appeared on the April 24, 2012 telecast (1.8/6) and
matched its highest Tuesday result since March 2, 2010 (1.9/7) during
Jay Leno's first week back on "Tonight."  Jimmy's guests last night
included Tom Cruise, Judd Apatow, and musical guest Trans-Siberian
Orchestra

*	At 1:35 a.m. ET, "Last Call With Carson Daly" (1.1/4 in
metered-market households) scored its top Tuesday rating since April
24 (1.1/5).

Definitions:

Fast Affiliate Ratings: These first national ratings, including demographics, are available at approximately 11 AM (ET) the day after telecast, and are released to subscribing customers daily. These data, from the National People Meter sample, are strictly time-period information, based on the normal broadcast network feed, and include all programming on the affiliated stations, sometimes including network programming, sometimes not. The figures may include stations that did not air the entire network feed, as well as local news breaks or cutaways for local coverage or other programming. Fast Affiliate ratings are not as useful for live programs and are likely to differ significantly from the final results, because the data reflect normal broadcast feed patterns. For example, with a World Series game, Fast Affiliate Ratings would include whatever aired from 8-11PM on affiliates in the Pacific Time Zone, following the live football game, but not game coverage that begins at 5PM PT. The same would be true of Presidential debates as well as live award shows and breaking news reports.

Rating: Estimated percentage of the universe of TV households (or other specified group) tuned to a program in the average minute. Ratings are expressed as a percent.

Share (of Audience): The percent of households (or persons) using television who are tuned to a specific program, station or network in a specific area at a specific time. (See also, Rating, which represents tuning or viewing as a percent of the entire population being measured.)

Time Shifted Viewing – Program ratings for national sources are produced in three streams of data – Live, Live+Same Day (Live+SD) and Live+7 Day. Time shifted figures account for incremental viewing that takes place with DVRs. Live+Same Day (Live+SD) include viewing during the same broadcast day as the original telecast, with a cut-off of 3:00AM local time when meters transmit daily viewing to Nielsen for processing. Live+7 Day ratings include incremental viewing that takes place during the 7 days following a telecast.

For more information see Numbers 101 and Numbers 102.